'Harris' Rapid Pursuit: Raises 280 Billion Won in One Week of Presidential Bid... Trump Bewildered by Harris' Sudden Rise (Comprehensive)

June Fundraising Surpasses Biden and Trump Donations
Harris Favorability Rises... Narrowly Chasing Trump
Trump Calls "Far-Left Lunatic" in Harsh Remarks

Vice President Kamala Harris, who has secured the Democratic presidential ticket, has reportedly raised $200 million (approximately 277 billion KRW) within a week of declaring her presidential bid. Riding a wave of increasing favorability among voters, especially younger demographics, Harris is rapidly closing the gap in approval ratings against the Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump, creating an extremely tight race.

On the 28th (local time), the Harris campaign announced that they had raised $200 million in just one week since the 21st, with 66% of the contributions coming from new donors.

Last month, former President Trump and President Biden raised $105.8 million (approximately 146.5 billion KRW) and $63.8 million (approximately 88 billion KRW) respectively, according to OpenSecrets, a nonprofit organization tracking political funding flows. Harris’s fundraising in one week surpassed the combined total of these amounts.

Democratic supporters have quickly rallied around Harris since her entry. While the Trump campaign raised $431.2 million (approximately 597.5 billion KRW) and the Biden campaign $332.4 million (approximately 460.5 billion KRW) in the second quarter, leaving the Democrats behind, Harris’s emergence as a savior has triggered a flood of donations. Harris is expected to be officially confirmed as the Democratic presidential nominee on the 7th of next month and will announce her running mate, the vice presidential candidate.

The presidential race is also shifting dramatically. The contest has changed from a battle between older white men to a showdown between a "50-something woman of color" and a "70-something white man," forcing both sides to revise their election strategies. Voter favorability toward Vice President Harris has surged. According to a survey conducted by ABC News and Ipsos from the 26th to 27th among 1,200 Americans, 43% expressed a favorable view of Harris, up 8 percentage points from 35% a week earlier. In contrast, favorability toward former President Trump dropped 4 percentage points from 40% to 36%. Harris is rapidly expanding her support base, especially among younger voters. Various internet memes featuring Harris have become popular on social media. Analysis of the video platform TikTok shows that posts mentioning Harris increased by 455% over the past month compared to before.

Various polls indicate that Harris is closing in on Trump in approval ratings. According to a survey conducted by Forbes and HarrisX from the 22nd to 24th among 3,000 American voters, Harris’s approval rating stood at 45%, just 2 percentage points behind Trump’s 47%. In a previous poll from the 19th to 21st, when Biden was still the presidential candidate, Trump led with 48% to Biden’s 40%, meaning the gap has narrowed from 8 percentage points to just 2 points in a short time.

Former President Trump, visibly unsettled by Harris’s rapid rise, has intensified his attacks against her. In a speech in St. Cloud, Minnesota, the previous day, Trump disparaged Harris as an "extreme left-wing lunatic" and a "crazy progressive," unleashing harsh rhetoric. This development makes it inevitable for the Republican Party to rethink its election strategy.

Additionally, Republican vice presidential candidate Senator J.D. Vance’s past derogatory remarks about Harris, calling her a "childless cat lady," have resurfaced, drawing criticism even within the Republican Party. Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro remarked, "If there were a time machine to go back two weeks, would Trump pick Vance again? Probably not."

The New York Times (NYT) assessed, "Two weeks after Vance’s nomination, some of his past comments threaten Trump’s appeal to female voters."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.